There are dozens of exciting research projects happening at The Queen Elizabeth Hospital.

These are details of two current projects which are working on developing better methods of detection and treatment for breast and prostate cancer.

Research is time-consuming work and many of the projects being developed and worked upon will take years before being able to be introduced to patients or a wider marketplace. We will, however, keep you up-to-date with exciting new research outcomes as they happen, so check back here frequently.

Dr Sally Stephenson’s Research

(Dr Stephenson is pictured top right in the Witchery Breast Cancer Lab)

Dr Sally Stephenson is undertaking some remarkable work into the development and spread of cancer cells that could potentially have an incredible impact on patient treatments world-wide. 

She has identified a protein that is found on the outside of breast cancer cells, but not normal cells. This protein is particularly important as it assists cancer cells to survive and grow. As the protein is only present on cancer cells, the next stage of Dr Stephenson’s research has been to develop a treatment that targets this cancer-specific protein.

In the results so far, this treatment has been successful in stopping the breast cancer from growing with no ill-effect on non-cancerous cells. It could mean the precise treatment of cancer without the non-specific side effects usually associated with cancer therapies like chemotherapy. 

This is a remarkable step forward for cancer therapy.

We also have the support of retail giant Witchery. Nationally, Witchery Fashion Stores have been long-time supporters of breast cancer research through their over-the-counter sales of breast cancer pink ribbons. Since 1998, South Australian Witchery has donated over $130,000 towards breast cancer research being undertaken at The Queen Elizabeth Hospital. With this support, the money raised in SA stays here and the outcomes benefit the South Australian community. 

 Dr Michael Raynor’s Research

(Dr Raynor is pictured middle right)

This project is focused on the detection of low levels of breast cancer cells in the blood of breast cancer patients with early-stage disease. Dr Raynor’s research looks for particular tumour cells that have escaped from the tumour and are spreading through the blood.

Many early-stage patients don’t get chemotherapy or radiation treatment and are considered to be in remission after having the tumour removed. However, they can often suffer from relapses.

The detection method being developed works by placing magnetic beads with an antibody attached to them into a patient’s blood sample. The antibodies on these beads recognize a protein on a cancer cell. If there are any cells floating around in the blood, they become attached to the magnetic beads, which are then removed and tested.

Detecting early stage breast cancer means patients have a choice of treatment options and a greatly increased survival rate.

Ken Lee's research

(Ken Lee is pictured bottom right)

Ken Lee is a student at the Basil Hetzel Institute. He is doing his PhD research project on prostate cancer. He is investigating the progression of prostate cancer and defining new targets on prostate cancer cells which will allow the development of safer treatments.